JP2006335045A - Screen printing plate, its manufacturing process, and process of manufacturing laminated ceramic electronic component - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a screen printing plate which can inhibit and prevent the generation of a saddle phenomenon in which the circumference domain of a printed pattern rises and its manufacturing process and to provide a process of manufacturing a laminated ceramic electronic component using this screen printing plate. <P>SOLUTION: The thickness T3 of a screen mesh 2 in a non-opening section 3 is smaller than the thickness of the screen mesh in at least part T1 of a printing opening section 4. Further, the thickness T2 of the screening mesh 2 in the central region 4a of the printing opening section 4 is smaller than the thickness T1 of the screening mesh 2 in the central region 4b of the printing opening section 4. An emulsion 5 constituting the non-opening section 3 is prevented from projecting beyond the two sides of the screening mesh 2 constituting the non-opening section 3. Thus, the emulsion 5 constituting the non-opening section 3 and the screening mesh 2 have substantially the same thickness. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a screen printing plate, a method for manufacturing the same, and a method for manufacturing a multilayer ceramic electronic component manufactured through a step of printing an electrode paste on a ceramic green sheet using the screen printing plate.

  As one of the typical multilayer ceramic electronic components, for example, as shown in FIG. 7, a multilayer ceramic capacitor element 51 in which a plurality of electrode films (internal electrodes) 52a and 52b are stacked with a ceramic layer 53 interposed therebetween. There is a multilayer ceramic capacitor having a structure in which external electrodes 55a and 55b are disposed on both end faces 54a and 54b so as to be electrically connected to the internal electrodes 52a and 52b.

  Such a multilayer ceramic capacitor is generally a laminated body formed through a process of laminating and pressing a ceramic green sheet having an electrode film (internal electrode pattern) formed on its surface by printing an electrode paste. After being divided into individual elements and fired, they are manufactured by applying external electrodes to the individual elements.

  As a multilayer ceramic electronic component typified by such a multilayer ceramic capacitor is reduced in size, a thinner ceramic layer and electrode film (internal electrode) constituting the multilayer ceramic electronic component are required.

  By the way, in a manufacturing process of a multilayer ceramic electronic component, a method of printing an electrode paste on a printing object (ceramic green sheet) by a screen printing method is generally used as a method of forming an electrode film.

FIG. 8A is a view showing a conventional screen printing plate used for screen printing, and FIG. 8B is an enlarged view showing a main part thereof (region indicated by R in FIG. 8A). .
The screen printing method is one type of stencil printing. As shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, a screen (screen mesh) 62 made of, for example, a mesh-like material is stretched on the plate frame 61 to draw an image line. In this method, printing is performed using a screen printing plate 70 having a printing opening 64 having a desired pattern by applying (coating) the emulsion 63 to an area other than the area and closing the eyes.
Specifically, printing is performed by filling a printing opening with a paste (for example, electrode paste) with a squeegee or the like and transferring the electrode paste onto a printing object (for example, a ceramic green sheet).
The film thickness of the paste printed by this screen printing method is usually proportional to the thickness of the screen mesh.

  However, after filling and extruding the paste from the printing opening formed in the screen printing plate, as shown in FIGS. 9 (a) and 9 (b), the screen printing plate from the printing object (for example, ceramic green sheet) 71 is used. When separating 70, the paste 65 in contact with the side surface (side surface of the non-opening region by the emulsion) 64 a of the printing opening 64 is stretched, and the peripheral region 65 a of the printed paste (printing pattern) 65 is expanded. As a result, the thickness Tp of the peripheral region 65a becomes larger than the thickness Tc of the central region 65b of the print pattern 65, and a so-called saddle phenomenon occurs in which the cross-sectional shape becomes a saddle shape. And when a saddle phenomenon generate | occur | produces, there exists a problem that an electrode film deform | transforms at the time of crimping | bonding of a laminated body, or a crack generate | occur | produces at the time of baking.

  As a method of suppressing the occurrence of the saddle phenomenon, the emulsion constituting the non-opening portion of the screen printing plate protrudes from the main surface (the lower surface in FIGS. 8A and 8B) of the screen mesh (screen printing plate). The thickness Te of the portion (projected to the lower surface side in FIG. 8 (a), (b) but may also project to the upper surface side) is reduced, and the side surface of the printing opening 64 (non-emulsion depending on the emulsion) is reduced. It can be considered that the contact area to the side surface 64a) of the region defined as the opening) is reduced to reduce the extension force when the plate is separated.

  However, in recent years, as the electrode film has become thinner, the thickness of the screen printing plate has decreased, and the total thickness of the screen printing plate composed of an emulsion and a screen mesh, and the thickness of the screen mesh Tm constituting the screen printing plate, The difference in thickness is small, and the value of the thickness Te of the emulsion protruding from the main surface of the screen mesh is small. Therefore, to reduce the elongation Te when separating the plate by reducing the thickness Te of the emulsion The fact is that there is a limit.

  That is, when a resist film is formed by forming only an emulsion due to recent advances in resist smoothing technology, the thickness of the resist film can be reduced to a level of 1 μm or less. When a screen printing plate is prepared by applying, an emulsion film (resist film) is formed at least as much as the thickness of the screen mesh. In fact, the saddle phenomenon caused by the elongation force at the time of separation of the plate due to the contact between the paste and the side surface of the paste has not been solved.

Further, as a method of reducing the difference in thickness between the central portion and the end portion (peripheral region) of the printing pattern (paste pattern) (that is, suppressing or preventing the occurrence of the saddle phenomenon), the printing opening portion of the screen printing plate The screen mesh opening in the peripheral area (area close to the non-opening area where the emulsion is applied) is made smaller than the opening in the central area of the printing opening, and the amount of paste discharged in the peripheral area of the printing opening is reduced. Thus, there has been proposed a method of reducing the thickness of the end portion (peripheral region) of the print pattern (that is, suppressing the thickness of the end portion (peripheral region) from being thicker than the central region) (Patent Document 1). ).
And in the Example of this patent document 1, it shows that the opening of the screen mesh of a peripheral region is made smaller than the opening of a central region by plating only to the peripheral region of the screen mesh of a printing opening part. Has been.

However, in the above conventional method, when producing a screen printing plate, it is necessary to apply plating to the peripheral area of the screen mesh of the printing opening, but in order to apply plating only to the peripheral area, printing is usually performed. It is necessary to coat the central region of the opening with a resist and apply plating only to the peripheral region. For this purpose, a process such as resist formation by photolithography is required, which not only increases the manufacturing cost of the screen printing plate but also takes time to manufacture the screen printing plate, resulting in a decrease in productivity. There is.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-186051

  The present invention solves the above-mentioned problem, a screen printing plate capable of suppressing and preventing the occurrence of a so-called saddle phenomenon, in which the peripheral area of the printing pattern is raised and the cross-sectional shape becomes a saddle shape, It is an object of the present invention to provide a manufacturing method thereof and a manufacturing method of a multilayer ceramic electronic component using the screen printing plate.

In order to solve the above problems, the screen printing plate of the present invention (Claim 1)
By applying the emulsion to the screen mesh stretched on the plate frame, a non-opening portion that is a non-penetrating state by the emulsion and a printing opening portion that is a non-penetrating region by the emulsion. In the screen printing plate formed,
The thickness of the screen mesh in the non-opening is smaller than the thickness of the screen mesh in at least a part of the printing opening.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the screen printing plate according to the first aspect of the present invention, wherein the printing opening is divided into a peripheral area near the non-opening to which the emulsion is applied, and a center surrounded by the peripheral area. When divided into regions, the thickness of the screen mesh in the peripheral region is smaller than the thickness of the screen mesh in the central region.

  The screen printing plate according to claim 3 is the structure of the invention according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the emulsion constituting the non-opening portion together with the screen mesh is formed on both upper and lower sides of the screen mesh constituting the non-opening portion. The thickness of the emulsion and the screen mesh is substantially the same.

In addition, the method for producing a screen printing plate of the present invention (claim 4),
By applying the emulsion to the screen mesh stretched on the plate frame, a non-opening portion that is a non-penetrating state by the emulsion and a printing opening portion that is a non-penetrating region by the emulsion. A method for producing a formed screen printing plate, comprising:
A process of reducing the thickness of a portion of the screen mesh stretched on the plate frame, excluding at least the central region of the printing opening, and
An emulsion is applied to the screen mesh stretched on the plate frame, and a non-opening portion which is a non-penetrating state by the emulsion and a printing opening portion which is a non-penetrating state by the emulsion. And a forming step.

  The method for producing a screen printing plate according to claim 5 is the method for producing a screen printing plate according to claim 4, wherein in the step of reducing the thickness of the screen mesh, the screen mesh is pressed using a mold. It is a feature.

Moreover, the manufacturing method of the multilayer ceramic electronic component of the present invention (Claim 6) is as follows:
A step of forming an electrode film on the ceramic green sheet by printing an electrode paste using the screen printing plate according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
Laminating the green sheet on which the electrode film has been formed, and press-bonding to form a laminate;
And a step of firing the laminate.

In the screen printing plate of the present invention (Claim 1), the emulsion is applied to the screen mesh stretched on the plate frame, whereby the non-opening portion which is a non-penetrated state by the emulsion and the non-penetrating by the emulsion. In a screen printing plate in which a printing opening, which is an unfinished area, is formed, the thickness of the screen mesh in the non-opening is made thinner than the thickness of the screen mesh in at least a part of the printing opening. Therefore, it becomes possible to reduce the thickness of the non-opening portion including the thickness of the emulsion, and the paste is filled in the printing opening portion, which is a region surrounded by the side surface of the non-opening region by the emulsion. It is possible to reduce the contact area between the paste and the side surface of the printing opening, and to reduce the stretching force at the time of separating the plate, while preventing the amount from becoming too large. It is possible to suppress the occurrence of the saddle phenomenon in which the peripheral region rises.
Note that a slight recess (usually several μm) may be formed on the squeegee running surface at the portion where the screen mesh is thinned. However, since the squeegee deforms and follows the shape of the recess, the paste is usually used. This does not cause a problem of remaining in the recess.

  Further, as in the screen printing plate of claim 2, in the configuration of the invention of claim 1, the printing opening includes a peripheral region near the non-opening to which the emulsion is applied, and a central region surrounded by the peripheral region. In this case, the thickness of the screen mesh in the peripheral area is made thinner than the thickness of the screen mesh in the central area, thereby reducing the amount of paste filled in the peripheral area of the printing opening easily and reliably. Thus, it is possible to reduce the contact area with the side surface of the printing opening, reduce the extension force when separating the plate, and efficiently suppress the occurrence of the saddle phenomenon.

  Further, as in the screen printing plate of claim 3, in the configuration of the invention of claim 1 or 2, the emulsion constituting the non-opening portion together with the screen mesh protrudes on both the upper and lower sides of the screen mesh constituting the non-opening portion. If the thickness of the emulsion and the screen mesh constituting the non-opening is substantially the same, the height (thickness) of the side surface of the printing opening is reduced (thin) and the printing opening It is possible to reduce the amount of paste filling the peripheral area, and it is possible to reduce the contact area to the side of the printing opening of the paste. Generation can be efficiently suppressed and prevented.

  Further, as in the method for producing a screen printing plate of the present invention (Claim 4), after reducing the thickness of a portion of the screen mesh stretched on the plate frame excluding at least the central region of the printing opening, Emulsion is applied to the screen mesh stretched on the frame to form a non-opening portion that is a non-penetrating state by the emulsion and a printing opening portion that is a non-penetrating state by the emulsion. In such a case, as in the case of forming a mask using a photosensitive emulsion, the thickness of the portion excluding at least the central region of the printing opening through the general emulsion coating, exposure, and development steps. Thin screen printing plates can be manufactured efficiently, and processing time can be shortened and cost can be reduced compared to the case where the screen mesh opening is changed by plating. It is possible to reduce the door.

  Further, as in the method for producing a screen printing plate of claim 5, in the configuration of the invention of claim 4, in the step of reducing the thickness of the screen mesh, when the screen mesh is pressed using a mold, It is possible to easily and surely reduce the thickness of a desired region of the screen mesh without incurring an increase in cost, and the present invention can be further effectively realized.

  Moreover, the manufacturing method of the multilayer ceramic electronic component of this invention (Claim 6) uses the screen printing plate according to any one of Claims 1 to 3 to print an electrode paste on the ceramic green sheet. A flatness without a saddle phenomenon, comprising a step of forming an electrode film, a step of laminating and pressing a green sheet on which the electrode film is formed, forming a laminate, and a step of firing the laminate. Since a laminate is formed using a ceramic green sheet having an excellent electrode film (for example, an internal electrode pattern), the electrode film is deformed when the laminate is pressed, or cracks are generated when firing. This makes it possible to efficiently manufacture a highly reliable multilayer ceramic electronic component.

  The features of the present invention will be described in more detail below with reference to examples of the present invention.

FIG. 1A is a diagram showing a screen printing plate according to one embodiment (Example 1) of the present invention, and FIG. 1B is an enlarged view of an essential part (region indicated by R in FIG. 1A). FIG.
By the method described below, as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the emulsion 5 is applied to the screen mesh 2 stretched on the plate frame 1, and the region made non-penetrated by the emulsion 5 is used. A screen printing plate 10 having a non-opening portion 3 and a printing opening portion 4 which is a region not made non-penetrated by the emulsion 5 was manufactured.

[Preparation of screen printing plate]
(1) A screen mesh having a thickness of 30 μm was prepared by forming a mesh using a stainless steel wire having a wire diameter of 18 μm and then performing pressure forming.
When a wire rod having a wire diameter of 18 μm is used, as shown in FIG. 2A, the wire rod 12 constituting the screen mesh 2 overlaps at the intersection, so that the thickness is at least 36 μm as it is, but the mesh shape is used. By pressing in the state, as shown in FIG. 2 (b), as a result of crushing and flattening the mountain portion 12 a at the intersection of the wire 12, a screen mesh 2 having a thickness of 30 μm is obtained. This pressure forming process may be omitted.

(2) Then, as shown in FIGS. 4 (a) and 4 (b), the printing opening of the screen mesh 2 is formed using a convex mold 11 having a protruding portion 11a corresponding to the peripheral area of the printing opening. The peripheral area in the area to be the part 4 (the area inside the area to be the non-opening part 3 and the width: W is 150 μm) 4a and the area to be the non-opening part 3 are pressed and the periphery of the printing opening part 4 Processing was performed such that the thickness T2 of the region 4a and the thickness T3 of the region to be the non-opening portion 3 were 25 μm, and the thickness T1 of the central region 4b of the printing opening 4 was 30 μm (the original thickness of the screen mesh 2).
By this processing, a configuration is obtained in which the thickness (25 μm) of the screen mesh 2 in the peripheral region 4 a and the non-opening portion 3 is thinner than the thickness (30 μm) of the screen mesh in the non-opening portion 3.
2A and 2B, the thickness of the peripheral region 4a of the screen mesh 2 and the non-opening 3 can be reduced by pressing using the mold 11. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, by pressing so that the mountain portion 12a at the intersection of the wire 12 constituting the screen mesh 2 is further flattened, as shown in FIG. The thickness can be further reduced.
However, in FIGS. 1, 5, and 6 showing the screen printing plate according to the embodiment of the present invention, when the shape of the wire is shown flat, the shape of the boundary of the region where the thickness of the screen mesh is different is unclear. Therefore, the wire 12 constituting the screen mesh 2 is typically not shown as a flat shape, but is schematically shown in a circular cross-sectional shape.

  (3) Next, a photosensitive resin composition was applied as an emulsion using a bucket and then dried to form a film, thereby forming an unexposed screen printing plate.

  (4) Then, an electrode pattern film was applied to the emulsion (film) by vacuum contact treatment, and exposure processing was performed with a metal halide lamp.

  (5) Next, water development was performed to remove the emulsion (film) in the unexposed area (area to be a printing opening). When performing water development, the exposed screen printing plate (screen mesh) is immersed in water to elute most of the unexposed area, and water is sprayed with a hydraulic spray gun to unexposed area. The remaining photosensitive resin was completely removed.

Then, it was made to dry and the screen printing plate provided with the printing opening part which has a shape corresponding to the electrode pattern for multilayer ceramic capacitors, and the non-opening part was obtained.
The dimensions of each part of this screen printing plate were as follows.
Screen mesh thickness T1 in the center area of the printing opening: 30 μm
Screen mesh thickness T2 in the peripheral area of the print opening: 25 μm
Non-opening screen mesh thickness T3: 25 μm
Emulsion thickness T4: 2 μm protruding from the lower surface of the screen mesh
Total thickness of non-opening T5: 27μm

Using this screen printing plate, an electrode paste was screen-printed on a ceramic green sheet, dried to form an electrode film, and the film thickness was measured. As a result, the film thickness of the central portion of the electrode film corresponding to the central region of the printing opening (region having a screen mesh thickness of 30 μm) was 1.5 μm.
In addition, the film thickness of the peripheral portion of the electrode film corresponding to the peripheral region of the printing opening (region having a screen mesh thickness of 25 μm) was 1.8 μm.

  For comparison, two screen printing plates of Comparative Example 1 and Comparative Example 2 below were prepared, and electrode films were formed by the same method as in Example 1 using the screen printing plates. The thickness was measured.

<Comparative Example 1>
(1) Conditions for Screen Printing Plate of Comparative Example 1 In Comparative Example 1, a screen printing plate was prepared with the thickness of each part of the screen mesh being constant at 30 μm as follows.
Screen mesh thickness T1 in the center area of the printing opening: 30 μm
Screen mesh thickness T2 in the peripheral area of the print opening: 30 μm
Non-opening screen mesh thickness T3: 30 μm
Emulsion thickness T4: 2 μm protruding from the lower surface of the screen mesh
Total thickness of non-opening T5: 32 μm
Other conditions were the same as the screen printing plate of Example 1 above.

(2) Film thickness of the formed electrode film Film thickness of the central part of the electrode film corresponding to the central area of the printing opening: 1.5 μm
Film thickness of the peripheral part of the electrode film corresponding to the peripheral area of the printing opening: 2.3 μm

<Comparative Example 2>
(1) Conditions for Screen Printing Plate of Comparative Example 2 In Comparative Example 2, a screen printing plate was prepared with the thickness of each part of the screen mesh being constant at 25 μm as follows.
Screen mesh thickness T1 in the central area of the printing opening: 25 μm
Screen mesh thickness T2 in the peripheral area of the print opening: 25 μm
Non-opening screen mesh thickness T3: 25 μm
Emulsion thickness T4: 2 μm protruding from the lower surface of the screen mesh
Total thickness of non-opening T5: 27μm
Other conditions were the same as the screen printing plate of Example 1 above.

(2) Film thickness of the formed electrode film Film thickness of the central part of the electrode film corresponding to the central area of the printing opening: 1.2 μm
Film thickness of the peripheral part of the electrode film corresponding to the peripheral area of the printing opening: 1.8 μm

  From the above results, when the screen printing plate according to the example of the present invention is used, the difference in film thickness between the central portion and the peripheral portion of the electrode film is smaller than when the screen printing plates of Comparative Examples 1 and 2 are used. Confirmed that you can.

[Capacitor manufacturing method]
(1) By forming a ceramic green sheet having a thickness of 3.0 μm after firing and screen printing an electrode pattern for forming an internal electrode on the ceramic green sheet using the screen printing plate of Example 1 above. Then, an electrode pattern (internal electrode film) was formed on the ceramic green sheet.

  (2) Then, 300 ceramic green sheets on which internal electrode films were formed were laminated and pressure-bonded to produce a laminate.

  (3) The binder was removed at a temperature of 300 ° C., and then calcined for 2 hours at a temperature of 1100 to 1300 ° C.

  (4) Next, an external electrode-forming Ag paste is applied to both end faces of the fired laminate and baked at a temperature of 600 ° C. to form an external electrode electrically connected to the internal electrode. 7, that is, internal electrodes 52 a, 52 b are formed on both end surfaces 54 a, 54 b of a multilayer ceramic capacitor element 51 in which a plurality of electrode films (internal electrodes) 52 a, 52 b are stacked via a ceramic layer 53. A multilayer ceramic capacitor having a structure in which external electrodes 55a and 55b are arranged so as to be electrically connected to each other is obtained.

  By using the screen printing plate produced in Example 1 to produce a multilayer ceramic capacitor in accordance with the above-described procedure, there is no internal electrode deformation or crack, and the multilayer ceramic capacitor has high reliability and desired characteristics. Was able to be produced.

  As described above, in the screen printing plate of the present invention (Example 1), the thickness of the screen mesh in the non-opening portion is made thinner than the thickness of the screen mesh in at least a partial region of the printing opening portion. It is possible to reduce the thickness of the non-opening including the thickness of the emulsion, and the amount of paste filling in the printing opening, which is a region surrounded by the side surface of the region made non-opening by the emulsion, is large. It is possible to suppress the contact between the paste and the side surface of the printing opening, while suppressing the occurrence of over-extension. As a result, it is possible to reduce the extension force at the time of separating the plate and suppress the occurrence of a saddle phenomenon in which the peripheral area of the print pattern is raised.

  In addition, since the laminate is formed using a ceramic green sheet having an electrode film with excellent flatness (for example, an internal electrode pattern) in which no saddle phenomenon occurs, the electrode film is deformed when the laminate is pressed. Or cracks during firing can be prevented, and a highly reliable multilayer ceramic electronic component can be efficiently manufactured.

  In Example 1, the emulsion constituting the non-opening part has a structure that protrudes to the lower surface side of the screen mesh constituting the non-opening part and does not protrude to the upper surface side. It is also possible to adopt a configuration in which the emulsion to be projected protrudes to the upper surface side of the screen mesh.

FIGS. 5A and 5B are diagrams showing the configuration of a screen printing plate according to another embodiment (Example 2) of the present invention.
In the first embodiment, the thickness of the screen mesh in the peripheral area of the printing opening is made smaller than the thickness of the screen mesh in the central area of the printing opening so as to be the same as the thickness of the screen mesh in the non-opening area. However, as shown in FIGS. 5 (a) and 5 (b), in Example 2, the peripheral area 4a and the central area 4b of the printing opening 4 have the same thickness of the screen mesh 2, while The thickness of the screen mesh 2 of the non-opening 3 is made thinner than the thickness of the screen mesh of the printing opening 4.

  The other configuration of the screen printing plate shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B is the same as that of the screen printing plate of Example 1 shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B. 5A and 5B, the same reference numerals as those in FIGS. 1A and 1B denote the same or corresponding parts.

  In the case of the screen printing plate of Example 2 as well, it is possible to prevent the paste from being filled too much in the printing opening, which is a region surrounded by the side surface of the non-opening region by the emulsion, It is possible to reduce the contact area between the paste and the side surface of the printing opening. As a result, it is possible to reduce the extension force at the time of separating the plate and suppress the occurrence of a saddle phenomenon in which the peripheral area of the print pattern is raised.

  In addition, by forming a laminate using a ceramic green sheet having an electrode film (for example, an internal electrode pattern) excellent in flatness without causing a saddle phenomenon, the electrode film is deformed when the laminate is crimped, It becomes possible to prevent the occurrence of cracks during firing, and a highly reliable multilayer ceramic electronic component can be efficiently manufactured.

6 (a) and 6 (b) are diagrams showing the configuration of a screen printing plate according to another embodiment (Example 3) of the present invention.
In Example 1 described above, the emulsion 5 constituting the non-opening portion 3 has a structure protruding to the lower surface side of the screen mesh 2 constituting the non-opening portion 3, but FIGS. 6 (a) and 6 (b). As shown in FIG. 3, in Example 3, the emulsion 5 constituting the non-opening portion 3 does not protrude on both the upper and lower sides of the screen mesh 2 constituting the non-opening portion 3 and the emulsion constituting the non-opening portion 3 5 (that is, the total thickness T5 of the non-opening portion) and the thickness T3 of the screen mesh 2 are made substantially the same.

  The other configuration of the screen printing plate shown in FIGS. 6 (a) and 6 (b) is the same as that of the screen printing plate of the first embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 (a) and 1 (b). 6 (a) and 6 (b), the same reference numerals as those in FIGS. 1 (a) and 1 (b) indicate the same or corresponding parts.

  The emulsion 5 constituting the non-opening portion 3 together with the screen mesh 2 does not protrude from the upper and lower surfaces of the screen mesh 2 constituting the non-opening portion 3 so that the thickness of the emulsion 5 constituting the non-opening portion 3 (that is, the non-opening portion 3) When the total thickness T5) of the opening 3 and the thickness T3 of the screen mesh 2 are substantially the same, the height of the side surface of the printing opening 4 is further reduced, and the filling amount of the paste into the printing opening is large. It is possible to prevent the contact area between the paste and the side surface of the printing opening portion from being reduced more reliably while suppressing the occurrence of over-extension. As a result, it is possible to reduce the elongation force at the time of separating the plate and more reliably suppress the occurrence of the saddle phenomenon in which the peripheral area of the print pattern is raised.

In addition, by forming a laminate using a ceramic green sheet having an electrode film (for example, an internal electrode pattern) excellent in flatness without causing a saddle phenomenon, the electrode film is deformed when the laminate is crimped, It becomes possible to prevent the occurrence of cracks during firing, and a highly reliable multilayer ceramic electronic component can be efficiently manufactured.
In the third embodiment, the thickness T2 of the screen mesh in the peripheral area 4a of the printing opening is made smaller than the thickness of the screen mesh in the central area 4b of the printing opening so as to be the same as the thickness of the screen mesh in the non-opening area. However, the thickness of the screen mesh 2 in the peripheral area 4a and the central area 4b of the printing opening 4 is the same, while the thickness of the screen mesh 2 in the non-opening 3 is set to the thickness of the screen mesh in the printing opening 4. It may be thinner.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the wire mesh constituting the screen mesh is pressed so as to be flat and the screen mesh is thinned is described as an example. However, the wire material is predetermined at the intersection where the wire material intersects. When using screen meshes that are configured to face each other at a certain distance, the thickness of the screen mesh can be reduced by reducing or eliminating the gap without deforming the wire into a flat shape. It is possible to make it thinner.

  The invention of the present application is not limited to the examples in other respects as well. The configuration of the plate frame, the type of emulsion, the configuration and material of the screen mesh, the specific shape of the printing opening, the thickness of the screen mesh Various applications and modifications can be made within the scope of the invention with respect to a specific method for reducing the thickness.

As described above, the screen printing plate of the present invention has a non-opening portion that is made non-penetrating by applying an emulsion to the screen mesh, and a printing opening that is a region that is not made non-penetrating. In the screen printing plate, the thickness of the non-opening screen mesh is made thinner than the thickness of the screen mesh in at least a part of the printing opening. This reduces the amount of paste that fills the printing opening, and reduces the contact area between the paste and the side of the printing opening. Thus, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of a saddle phenomenon in which the peripheral area of the print pattern is raised.
In addition, by using the screen printing plate of the present invention to produce a laminated ceramic electronic component through a process of laminating a ceramic green sheet having an electrode film with excellent flatness printed with an electrode paste, it is possible to press the laminate. It is possible to efficiently manufacture a highly reliable multilayer ceramic electronic component by preventing the electrode film from being sometimes deformed or cracking during firing.
Therefore, the present invention is manufactured through a technical field that requires printing a paste such as an electrode paste to form a printed pattern with excellent flatness, and a process of laminating ceramic green sheets printed with an electrode paste. The present invention can be widely applied to the field of multilayer ceramic electronic components.

(a) is a figure which shows the screen printing plate concerning one Example (Example 1) of this invention, (b) is a figure which expands and shows the principal part. (a), (b) is a figure for demonstrating the thickness of a screen mesh. It is a figure which shows the structure of a screen mesh when the thickness of a screen mesh is made still thinner. It is a figure explaining the method of making the thickness of the screen mesh of the peripheral area of a printing opening part thinner than the thickness of the screen mesh of a center area, (a) is a top view, (b) is pressing a screen mesh with a metal mold | die. It is front sectional drawing which shows the state which is carrying out. (a) is a figure which shows the screen printing plate concerning other Example (Example 2) of this invention, (b) is a figure which expands and shows the principal part. (a) is a figure which shows the screen printing plate concerning other Example (Example 3) of this invention, (b) is a figure which expands and shows the principal part. It is a figure which shows the structure of the multilayer ceramic capacitor which is an example of the multilayer ceramic electronic component manufactured using the screen printing plate of this invention. (a) is a figure which shows the conventional screen printing plate, (b) is a figure which expands and shows the principal part. (a) is a figure explaining the situation where a saddle phenomenon occurs when the plate is released, and (b) is an enlarged view showing a printing pattern having a saddle cross-sectional shape.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Plate frame 2 Screen mesh 3 Non-opening part 4 Printing opening part 4a Peripheral area | region in the area | region used as a printing opening part 4b Central area | region of a printing opening part 5 Emulsion 10 Screen printing plate 11 Mold 11a Corresponding to the peripheral area | region of a printing opening part Part 12 Wire 12a Mountain part at the intersection of the wire T1 Thickness of the screen mesh in the central area of the printing opening T2 Thickness of the screen mesh in the peripheral area T3 Thickness of the screen mesh in the non-opening T4 Projecting from the lower surface side of the screen mesh Thickness of the emulsion T5 Total thickness of the non-opening portion 51 Multilayer ceramic capacitor element 52a, 52b Internal electrode 53 Ceramic layer 54a, 54b End face 55a, 55b External electrode

Claims (6)

By applying the emulsion to the screen mesh stretched on the plate frame, a non-opening portion that is a non-penetrating state by the emulsion and a printing opening portion that is a non-penetrating region by the emulsion. In the screen printing plate formed,
The screen printing plate, wherein the thickness of the screen mesh in the non-opening portion is thinner than the thickness of the screen mesh in at least a partial region of the printing opening portion.   In the case where the printing opening is divided into a peripheral region near the non-opening portion to which the emulsion is applied and a central region surrounded by the peripheral region, the thickness of the screen mesh in the peripheral region is the central region. The screen printing plate according to claim 1, wherein the screen printing plate is thinner than the thickness of the screen mesh.   The emulsion constituting the non-opening portion together with the screen mesh does not protrude from the upper and lower surfaces of the screen mesh constituting the non-opening portion, and the emulsion and the screen mesh have substantially the same thickness. The screen printing plate according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that By applying the emulsion to the screen mesh stretched on the plate frame, a non-opening portion that is a non-penetrating state by the emulsion and a printing opening portion that is a non-penetrating region by the emulsion. A method for producing a formed screen printing plate, comprising:
A process of reducing the thickness of a portion of the screen mesh stretched on the plate frame, excluding at least the central region of the printing opening, and
An emulsion is applied to the screen mesh stretched on the plate frame, and a non-opening portion which is a non-penetrating state by the emulsion and a printing opening portion which is a non-penetrating state by the emulsion. And a step of forming the screen printing plate.   5. The method for producing a screen printing plate according to claim 4, wherein, in the step of reducing the thickness of the screen mesh, the screen mesh is pressed using a mold. A step of forming an electrode film on the ceramic green sheet by printing an electrode paste using the screen printing plate according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
Laminating the green sheet on which the electrode film has been formed, and press-bonding to form a laminate;
A method for producing a multilayer ceramic electronic component, comprising: firing the multilayer body.

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